Meant to Be
by HonBuns
Summary: Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde have been partners at the ZPD for four months. They have developed a strong friendship but they want more.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter I

Judy was sitting at her desk, concentrating hard on her report. She was feeling exhausted from the long day she and her partner, Nick Wilde, had had. It was one of those days that involved a lot of filing complaints from civilians and patrolling the streets of Zootopia to find nothing much exiting which was what made the day long and boring to a point. Long and boring for police officers anyway. She was typing quickly on her computer and putting as much details as she could into the reports. She was always proud of her reports and even on the verge of falling asleep out of boredom, she did her best even at the most tedious task, which was filing the daily paperwork.

"Hey, Carrots!" Her partner, Nick, came into their small office (or big cubicle). "Still busy with that report?" She gave no answer. Instead, she continue typing fast, looking hypnotized on the computer screen. When Nick was about to say something else, she raised her paws and hit the Enter key hard with one finger. "Done! Sent!" She said with a high musical voice, and spun on her chair to face Nick. "Sorry, I didn't wanna lose focus. Ready to go?"

"I've been ready since an hour ago, Carrots." he exaggerated. "Seriously, you have to stop trying to include every single detail of every minute of the day if you…" He was cut off when he felt her hug his arm. "Thank you for waiting, Nick." Judy said as she let go of his arm. "I'll try to be faster next time is my turn to file the report." Her eyes looked tired but she was smiling at him. Nick said nothing but return the smile.

They both walked together towards the ZPD parking lot and got into their assigned police cruiser. They had a routine all worked up. One week after the Night Howler incident, Nick joined the Police Academy and graduated six months later. He had become Judy's partner and had been for the last four months. Every evening after work, one of them would file the day's report, while the other would gather all of their belongings and put them in the cruiser. They took turns for that as well as for driving the other one home.

Tonight it was Nick's turn to drive Judy home and pick her up next morning. "So, Carrots." He began while starting the engine. "Are you too tired or do you want to grab a bite before I drop you off?" It was not rare for them to go to a bar or a restaurant after work every once in a while to have some drinks or some dinner. "I was thinking the usual?"

"Sure." She answered. "I am actually very hungry and you must be too since we haven't eaten anything since this morning." She looked at him with a small smile.

"Perfect." Was his reply. "My treat."

"No, Nick." Her tone had a warning on it. "You always say 'my treat', let me pay this time, please."

"Don't worry about it, Fluff." He said in a calm manner. "I like to treat you. It's the least I can do after everything you've done for me."

"Nick, please stop saying that. I've told you. Everything you've done has been because of you and your capabilities. I just pushed you a little." He wanted to tell her she was wrong and that anything and everything good that had happened to him in his life, started the moment he met her. He wanted to tell her that since the day they began to work together, even if it was reluctantly at first, he had started to become a better person. A much better version of himself. He knew that without her, he would still be a street hustler with no goals in his life. But he decided to omit all of this.

"Next time your treat, Carrots."

She rolled her eyes as she knew perfectly well they will have the same argument next time, but she could not help but smile. "Whatever, Slick."

They arrived at their usual place, a bistro restaurant where they served both prey and predator food. After ordering they just talked and talked, which was strange since they had spend the day and, as a matter of fact, all week together, but that didn't matter. They would always find something to talk about as if they hadn't seen each other for days.

"See ya tomorrow, Carrots." Said Nick, looking at her with a pleasant smile and lazy eyes. He was already dropping her home.

"Sleep well." She answered with a wave. "Don't be late tomorrow!"

His smile widen. "Bye, Fluff!"

Judy watched him drive away with a sigh. She entered her building, went upstairs to her apartment and then straight to her bed. She removed her uniform while lying there with her thoughts. All of them about her partner. She grinned in a way that she only allowed herself to do when she was alone since she was sure that if someone saw her face looking like that, they would know who she was thinking of: Nick. His best friend and partner. Who had helped her and supported her even before becoming friends. She knew her career and life would not be the same without him. The thought became bittersweet when she came to the realization that he would never see her as more than a bunny friend.

Nick was driving the streets of Zootopia. It was a starry night, both the sky and city looked amazing but his mind was busy thinking about her. " _Judy._ " All the things he wanted to tell her but he knew he could never do that. How would she react if she even suspected he had feelings for her? Feelings so intense that might frighten her. As he entered his apartment he let himself think that she shared his feelings. Sometimes it really feel like she did. The long looks she gave him along with a dreamy smile, hugging his arm… but he would dismiss these ideas quickly. After all, he was a fox and she was a rabbit. Being friends was already too good to be true. He would settle with being no more than that if that meant he could keep her in his life.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter II

A few days went by with not much to point out. Nick was working on the day's report, he was sitting in front of his computer and Judy was in front of hers, her back to Nick's. She was checking her emails as she had everything ready and was just waiting for Nick to finish so they could go. Then her phone started ringing.

"Hey mom, what's up?" It was a video call, she could see her mother in the kitchen in Bunnyburrow. Every few days one or both of her parents would call her to make sure she was fine.

"Hello, darling!" Said her mom with a more than excited tone before realizing her daughter was still at the office. "Wait. Why are you still at the office, my dear? Judy, we talked about this, you work too hard, you have to understand that a life outside of work is healthy…"

"Did you tell her? Did you tell her?" The voice of her sister interrupted her, which Judy appreciated since she knew where her mother was going.

"Tell me what?" She asked with genuine curiosity. "What's going on?"

"I'm getting married, Judy!" Her sister cried over the phone and she was able to see her dancing in the back.

"That's right, Judy." Her mother continued, her excitement back to her voice. "Your _little_ sister is getting married, isn't it great?!" Her mother continued to talk about the subject but Judy was already in a bad mood because her mother had emphasized the word "little", she knew her mother was going somewhere with this. "What about you, darling? Anything exciting happening in your life? Well you are a police officer. What I mean is have you gone out on a date? Met someone nice? Anything?"

"Mom." She said a little bit annoyed, noticing Nick was now up. "We've talked about his, please let's not get into that again. I have to go. Nick is ready and waiting for me." Her mother did what she thought best and dropped the conversation and she greeted Nick who was of course listening a little amused. He returned the greeting.

"Hello Mrs. Hopps and thank you, by the way, for those blueberry pies, they were delicious." He was standing behind Judy now.

"Your welcome, Nick. I'm glad you liked them." Bonnie said with a maternal expression. "Ok kids, I'll let you go now, bye!"

When they were in the police cruiser, Nick noticed Judy's ears droopy and concern in her eyes. "What's wrong, Carrots?" He asked gently. "I thought you'd be happy to hear the good news about your sister."

"Oh no, it's not that." She tried to sounded cheerful but Nick could not be fooled, he stared at her eyes until she had to continued. "I mean, I am happy for her. It's just what my mom said, I know it's silly and it should not get to me but, you know." Nick knew what she was trying to say and even though he did not want to know, as his friend he felt he had to ask.

"Well, I know but I don't really understand." He said. "Why don't you go out on dates? I mean, I know your schedule and sometimes is not that tight. If it really bothers you…"

"It doesn't bother me not going out on dates." She sounded a little annoyed and Nick could tell right away that it was a delicate subject, but he did not understand why she looked at him with sad eyes. "Sorry, I mean… it's more complicated than that. There are many reasons…"

"Like what?" Nick asked softly and genuine interest.

Judy could only think of one reason and it was that she wanted to go out with him and not just _anyone_ else. She tilted her head to look at him in the eye and was about to tell him the truth, she parted her lips but she couldn't bring herself to say it. She broke eye contact and started talking, saying whatever came to her mind.

"Well, you know, I need to focus on my career and I don't know anyone in the city and like I said is complicated."

For a moment, before she started rambling, Nick swore she was going to tell him what he dreamed about her saying but he brushed that thought off and tried to give her good advice.

"Oh, come on, Fluff. That's a bunch of BS. Look, don't let your mom get on your nerves. I'll take you home, you just need a good night sleep." He decided to drive since she seemed very distracted to do that.

They stayed silent the rest of the ride until they said their goodbyes.

Once Nick was alone at his apartment with his thinking, he began wondering why her eyes seemed so sad and as if he was the source of that sadness. He started wondering if maybe she was trying to tell him something. " _You are just imagining things, Wilde._ " Said his inner voice while he fell asleep on his bed. Still, he couldn't help but feel a little hope.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter III

The next morning, while patrolling the Tundra Town district as was indicated in their schedule, Judy and Nick received a call. Apparently someone called the ZPD reporting a scandal in an apartment building located in one of the most dangerous zones in Zootopia. Since they were so close to that location, they decided to go and take a look.

When they arrived at the building, they had to go up what seemed like hundreds of stairs since the elevator was out of order. Once they were outside the door of the apartment they were able to hear some unintelligible screaming. It was not strange for police officers to receive these calls that normally ended with a talk to a family that was having some issues, nothing out of control, just a domestic dispute. Nick knocked on the door strongly two times. "ZPD, may we have a word?" The noise from the other side of the door stopped. After a few seconds, they could hear the noise of some keys and the knob turning slowly.

What happened next went all so fast that it was hard to keep track: The door swung full open in one second. The next second they realized that a hog was standing in the threshold, holding one gun on each hoof and pointing directly at Nick and Judy. He was about to shoot them when, instantaneously, both Judy and Nick raised an arm and pushed the other on the opposite direction to protect the other against the bullets. They both fell to the side and were able to skip the fire.

The bullets hit the door from the apartment across the hall. Judy and Nick both were crouching on the floor at each side of the door frame. Judy called for backup. Next thing they knew, the hog was in the hallway and was about to charge at Judy but Nick was quicker and jumped behind the hog and restrain him, they wrestle for a while until the hog's guns dropped to the floor. He had been tranquilized by Judy. She stood up and entered the apartment to search the area. Nick followed her. Inside the apartment they found what seemed to be drugs of some sort and money along with a dead body. Apparently this was a fight between drug dealers that did not end well.

That afternoon, even though they were unhurt. Nick could not bring to ease himself thinking about what would have happened if something had gone wrong, however he tried to keep a cool attitude. They were given the rest of the day off. He decided he would test the waters today and if he felt like it was safe, maybe even declare his love to Judy. He was less afraid of doing that now after the events of the morning.

"So, Fluff." He told Judy. "I don't know about you but I am very hungry for almost dying today. What do you say we get some dinner?" Judy was also trying to convey a light mood even when her thoughts were the same as his.

" _If anything had happened to him..._ " But she sure was hungry too and of course wanted to spend as much time as possible with him, even more so under the circumstances. "I think that's a great id…" She was interrupted by the sound of her phone, her mother calling. She shot an apologetic look at Nick and answered the phone. She thought her family might had heard about the shooting incident on the news and maybe wanted to check on her. "Hey mom!, I'm fine don't worry..."

"Hey darling!" Her mother said, not sounding a bit worried, clearly she was unaware of the events of that morning. "I am calling you very quickly, dear, just to tell you something, but please don't be mad." Judy raised an eyebrow and even looked at Nick with a puzzled look, who reflected her face. Her mother continued. "Guess who I bumped into this morning?" She was waiting for Judy to respond.

"I don't know, mom." Said Judy with not really much interest. "Who?"

"Tom!" Said her mother, expecting Judy to be surprised.

"Hhmm. Mom I'm kind of busy..." she really didn't care.

"Hear me out Judy." Said her mother. "He told me he is staying in Zootopia for a while, since he is doing some work for his father's company and I thought it would be a good idea to give him your phone number and address so you two could…"

"What?!" Judy spat at her mother. "Why would you do that, mom?" This odd reaction caught Nick's attention, he had never heard Judy talk to her mother like that, so he looked the other way but he was listening, wondering who the heck Tom was.

"Judy, listen to me." Said her mother with a serious voice. "He said he misses you and wants to talk to you, and just so you know I gave him the spare key to you apartment and told him what time you get back from work, so he will probably be waiting for you…"

"No, no, no, no" Judy was rubbing her forehead with her fingers while holding the phone with the other paw. "You know what mom? I have to go, we'll talk about this later." She breathed in deeply and stood there motionless for a few seconds thinking that taking a bullet that morning would have been easier than facing her ex boyfriend at her apartment.

Nick was looking at her. Her reaction and what he heard her mother say about this Tom. " _He misses her_?" He thought. " _Wants to talk to her_ ". He didn't know what to make of that. "So, are you still up for dinner, Carrots?"

"You know what?" she sighed. Nick thought she didn't feel like eating anymore and she would probably say no. "Let's get some drinks instead. What do you think?" She had a worried look on her eyebrows but a hopeful one on her eyes. Nick, of course could not refuse.

"We can do both, Carrots."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter IV

They were at a bar that also served food. "Carrots, if you want to continue drinking like this, you're gonna have to eat something." He told her. "How about we order you a veggie burger?"

"I'm not even drunk, Nick." She responded a little amused. "You know I can handle a lot more." Nick knew that and remembered being very surprised the first time they went drinking together, when nothing bothered him. Now he could not stop wondering about this Tom.

Before today he had never realized how he and Judy had never talked about exes or relationships. Now that he thought about it, Judy was so amazing in so many ways that it would be stupid to think that no one had ever laid eyes on her, surely he was not the only male who noticed her. Anyhow, he was his friend so he could ask, right?

"So, who's Tom?" He asked trying to sound nonchalant.

Judy chuckled. "I was wondering when you were going to ask." She continued taking a sip of her beer but said nothing. This was making Nick go a little crazy inside, but he just remained looking at her. When she noticed that she chuckled again. "Fine." She began. "Tom is my ex, but I figure you could guess that."

"Well, yes, I imagined so." He said with a light grin on his face. "If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine". Judy thought about it for a second, after all Nick was his best friend so she saw no reason not to tell him about Tom, the beers she had in her system helped a little.

"No, it's fine." She paused, thinking how Nick never seemed curious about her love life before. The fact that he appeared a little surprised that she had dated hurt a little, probably because he didn't see her that way. "Well, believe it or not, Slick: I'm a girl." She said jokingly putting a hand to her chest in a ladylike kind of way, which Nick really enjoyed seeing. "And before joining the ZPD, actually before joining the Police Academy and becoming this..." She pointed to her full body. "I used to be... Well, you know, just normal. So, unlike now, I had a life and went out on dates sometimes."

"Was this before you wanted to be a cop?" Nick asked, a little delighted to learn about this side of her, his head resting on his paw.

"No." Judy went on. "I wanted to be a cop since I was nine. That was always my dream, but when I joined the Academy, everyone looked at me and just saw a 'cute little bunny', so I had to change my attitude, my looks and way of dressing because, believe me, wearing cute dresses and makeup and being 'emotional' was not helping me. Instead I had to put on this 'tough mask' to be taken seriously and gain just a little bit of respect and I discovered that acting that way actually scares guys away. I guess they prefer a more feminine lady, that's why I don't go out on dates anymore." She drank some beer.

"Anyway." She continued when she saw Nick was listening intently and waiting for her to go on. "Before I put this 'mask' on, whenever I went out on a date or met someone, I would never talk about what I wanted to be. I made sure to keep things, you know… casual. So I never had a serious or long term relationship." She looked a little embarrassed.

Nick was actually very surprised to hear all of this, it was a side of Judy he never even wondered about. He was feeling more close to her because of all the sharing and trust that it involved. He kept on listening noticing how she flushed a little as she continued speaking.

"When I met Tom I didn't even like him in the first place, he seemed pedantic and pompous but I told him about wanting to join the Police Academy and he didn't run away. Because of that I decided to give him a chance and I ended up a little bit infatuated but then after a year more or less, we broke up." She said the last sentence faster as if she did not want to deepen on that subject.

Nick, however, was not at all satisfied by the lack of details. "That's it? You just broke up?" He asked casually, hiding the fact that the word 'infatuated' made him feel a little awkward, he needed to know more mostly because he was positively curios about what someone could have done to end the relationship. "Come on, Carrots. You can tell me". She gave him a small nervous smile.

"Well, he wanted _more_ from the relationship." Seeing the confused look on the fox's face, she added. "He made me choose between my career and him." His jaw dropped a little, he was really impressed, and also little proud of his bunny for sticking up for herself like that. "So, I guess you can figure out what my choice was, detective." She joked. "And since my mom thinks he's the only mammal who has ever noticed me, I guess she's trying to 'help me'". She rolled her eyes as she made the air quotes but she also looked a little sad.

Maybe she still had feelings for him. " _He misses her, but... does she?_ " Nick couldn't help but feel a little jealous about the way the memory of her ex made her act. "How long ago did you break up?"

"Mmm, about the same time I've been living here." She said.

Nick's jaw dropped a little more this time. He met Judy right after she moved into Zootopia and they had been friends practically since then and she never mentioned she was going through a break up of a relationship that sounded like it was a serious one. Seeing the expression on her friend's face, she continued with her story.

"We broke up the day after I graduated from the Police Academy." He kept his ears pointing attentively at her. "I had told him about my dream of joining the Academy and prove that a bunny could be anything, even a police officer and he seemed really supportive, he even was happy for me when my application was accepted." She continued, glancing at her drink and then at Nick who was still listening carefully. "But apparently, he was under the impression that I just wanted to prove a point and that I only wanted to graduate from the ZPA, not actually pursuing a career as a cop." She took a sip of her drink and went on.

"We talked on the phone the day before my graduation and when he found out I was going to be most likely assigned to work at Precinct One, he didn't take it that well, so I was not surprised when he didn't show up for my graduation ceremony the next day." She looked a bit sadder.

"After the ceremony, when I went back home, he was there and tried to convince me that I had proven the world what I was capable of and now I could just forget about all that and focus on a future together." She looked down feeling a little embarrassed. "We just wanted different things, so I told him I was going to move here and pursue my dream job. I looked for apartments available on the internet that same day. There weren't many options, that's how I ended up in my shoebox, and well, the next day I took the train here."

The look on Nick's face reflected a little of the sadness of her face. "Carrots, I had no idea you were going through all of this when I met you." He didn't know exactly what to say. "I understand now why you said dating is complicated for you." Judy looked him with a questioning look, then she realized what he was probably thinking.

"Oh, no, no." She began. "He is not the reason I'm not dating. I mean I guess is a sad story but with everything that has happened since I moved in here, I hadn't even had time to think about it and I don't regret my decision at all. I've had the best time of my life, is all I've always dreamed of, you know." She wanted to make it clear that she did not have feelings for his ex. "I-I just didn't expect the guy to be waiting at my apartment just like that with almost no previous warning." She put her paws on her head and then raised her arms dramatically.

Nick had a smile on his face, he couldn't help but feeling happy when hearing he was part of 'the best days of her life' and he understood why she was feeling so nervous and why she continued to drink beer after beer, so he tried to cheer her up. "Don't worry, Fluff." He said with a grin on his face. "You can always stay at my place if you want to avoid the ex." They laughed lightly and he noticed she was flushing, probably because of all the alcohol she had drunk so far.

He finished his beer and thought the time would never get better to tell her or at least hint her a little with his feelings when her phone (that damned phone!) rang.

"Oh no. Unknown number." she said a little worried. "I think it's him."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter V

"Do you need some privacy?" He offered but she shook her head 'no' and answered the video call. Since Nick was opposite her, he could not see the phone screen, so he focused on her face.

"Hey, Tom!" She said trying to sound cheerful, but she was not doing a good job, Nick could tell she was a little annoyed which made him feel kind of good.

"Hey, beautiful!" Judy's ears flushed red but said nothing. "How are you?"

"Fine." But she didn't sound _that_ fine.

"I'm just calling to let you know that, I know your mom probably already told you I was in the city and that I have a key to your apartment."

"Yeah, that came up in the conversation." Said Judy sounding and looking a little more annoyed. "Look, Tom..."

"Don't worry, bright eyes." He interrupted nicely. "I know you are at work so I went to your apartment building and left the key under the doormat. I think I know you enough to know that you wouldn't feel good about me intruding into your life like that."

Her expression change from mildly annoyed, to surprised and then to grateful. She now had a sincere smile on his face while looking at her phone screen. Nick felt a little uneasy with this and all of the cheesy nicknames.

"Thank you, Tom."

"Hey, maybe we can have lunch one of these days and catch up, I'll call you. And before you say anything, I promise I will stop with the cheesy nicknames."

She laughed a little. "Bye, Tom." She put the phone away. "Well, that went better than I expected." She sounded relieved. "I'm actually feeling very hungry now. Do you want to order something?"

Nick smiled at her. He was feeling better too. She seemed relaxed now and he didn't hear her accept Tom's invitation to lunch.

"I guess, there is no need for me to stay at your place now." She joked. "But thanks anyway."

"Well, mi casa tu casa, Carrots. " He said in a smooth voice. "Now that I think about it, you don't even know what my place looks like."

"You are right." She said. "Maybe you can take me there sometime." Her ears went scarlet red as she finished that sentence and Nick gave her a flirtatious look jokingly. "I mean, you have seen my luxurious apartment many times now, so I am just curious." she tried to joke about it but the red of her ears stayed there.

They ordered some food and finished it very quickly. The waiter was picking up the plates and delivering some change from the bill.

"So... Nick." She began. "Do you have any problems like mine?"

"What do you mean, Carrots?"

"Yeah, with dating or exes?" She was looking curiously at him. "I feel like I spoke for hours about myself, so now it's your turn to share. If you want, of course."

He was looking kind of uncomfortable, but she had opened up to him.

"Well, this might come as a shock to you, Carrots but believe it or not, I have never been much of a 'ladies man'." He said. "I know, you may be wondering how can a smart and handsome fox like me be single?" They both laugh but after a few moments, he got more serious. Judy knew Nick's 'sly mask' perfectly, he used it a lot when they were interrogating suspects or around other coworkers, but not around Judy, they were past that.

"As a matter of fact, I have never been in a long term relationship or many relationships for that matter." He look down and lowered his voice a little. "I have trust issues, you see, which makes it difficult to be with someone, not only women, also friends. I rarely feel comfortable around people." He looked at her. "Well, except for you, of course."

"Aww Nick." The grin on her face was growing. "It's funny, you know? How we are so similar in so many ways. At this rate we will both end up old, grumpy and alone, right?" She humored.

"We don't have to be alone, you know?" This was it, Nick put his paw on top of hers which was resting on the table. "We could be together."

Judy felt her heart leaving her chest. Was Nick being serious? Was he teasing her? Was he just talking about friendship? She just froze, looking at his green eyes. He _did_ look serious.

She couldn't say anything, mostly because reading him was impossible with all of her thoughts going crazy inside her head. When she opened her mouth to speak nothing came out, he withdraw his paw and looked down.

"Do you wanna go for a walk, Slick?" She said and they left the restaurant.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter VI

"I don't know about you..." Judy broke the ice while they were walking in a park in front of the restaurant. "but I feel dizzy, maybe I shouldn't have drunk so much."

Nick said nothing, he had a plain look on his face. Judy realized that maybe he was not just talking about friendship back at the restaurant. She thought this moment would be as good as ever to confess her feelings. She even realized the scenery was very romantic: the park was almost empty and it had started to get dark and a few stars were printed in the sky.

"Nick." She was going to make sure she was not misinterpreting him. "What did you mean back at the restaurant when you said we could be together?"

Nick didn't know if he had to seize the opportunity and lie then continue like nothing had happened or just tell her. " _Dammit! Why is this so hard?_ " Then she stopped and grabbed his paw just to stop him as well. He looked down at her.

"You know, Nick." She was looking at her feet, her hands now in her pockets, clearly very nervous for what she was about to say. "I wasn't lying when I said my days in Zootopia had been the best in my life and yes a part of it is because I feel like I'm living my dream but a big part of it is because of you. Nick..." She raised her head to meet his eyes. "you are my best friend, the _only_ friend I have in the city and I feel like… Oh fuck." She suddenly said, her eyes looking behind Nick. "Shit! What are the chances!"

Nick was kind of amused and very confused since he had never heard Judy curse for no apparent reason, then he turned his face to see what she was looking at and saw a hare walking towards them.

"Is that…?"

"Mmhhmm." She was trying to look as casual as possible.

Nick was looking at the hare that was approaching. He was impressed that "cute" was not a word that came into his mind when describing the buck. He was very tall (although not as tall as Nick), had wide shoulders and strong facial features. He understood what Judy meant when she had thought he was pompous and pedantic, he certainly looked that way. " _A hare, huh?_ " Nick thought that maybe Judy was not opposed to dating outside her species. " _Nah, a hare is practically a rabbit._ "

The buck had a what-a-surprise-to-see-you kind of face. "Judy!" He said. "What a surprise!" He looked more and more excited as he approached, he was almost hopping his way to her. When he was in front of her, he took her in his arms and lifted her from the floor. She returned the hug, although she looked bothered.

Nick, stood there watching the display of affection for what he felt was forever. A snarl almost escaped his throat.

"Tom, put me down! You can't do that!" She sounded a little uncomfortable and took a step away from the buck. She turned to look at Nick who was trying his best to not look displeased with the picture before him.

"Tom, this is my partner at the ZPD, Nick Wilde." She pointed with both arms at Nick and looked at him. "Nick, this is Tom Fade."

Both males shook paws briefly. After a few minutes of small talk, Tom explained that he was taking a walk, his hotel was just a few blocks away from the park. Nick tried to relax when he felt good vibes coming from the hare, he really seemed like a nice guy, and that was good… or maybe not.

The fox was conflicted, he was confused and he couldn't help but feel defeated because a few moments ago, before Tom had arrived, it looked like he was going to be sent directly to the friend zone. He knew Tom and Judy had history together and it looked like they knew each other very well. Maybe they would talk and get back together and he will not be able to do anything because he was just the best friend.

"I think there's a lot of catch up for you to do." He said trying to sound cool. Judy gave him a mild perplexed look, but said nothing. "So, should I take the cruiser, or...?" He inquired.

"Oh... yes." She answered with a disappointed look on her face. "Pick me up tomorrow?"

"I'll be on time." He winked at her and turned to look at the buck. "Tom, it was a pleasure to meet you." He then turned back to look at Judy with a smile. "See ya tomorrow, Carrots." And as he was leaving, he overheard Tom saying 'You let him call you nicknames?' which made him grin.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter VII

Nick couldn't sleep well that night thinking about Judy. When he woke up in the morning he remembered he had a dream about Judy wearing summer dresses with floral patterns and light colors. He thought it was funny since he had only seen her wearing pants and mostly her uniform.

He got ready and left his apartment to go and pick her up. He was wondering if maybe he would find Tom still with her after spending the night at her place but he got rid of that though for his own sake.

Judy was already waiting for him outside her building, she got in the car and greeted Nick, the same as usual.

"So, how was your night, Carrots?" He said before starting the car.

"It was good." She responded sincerely. "Tom and I talked a lot, I have to confess I was pretty angry at you for ditching me there but it all worked out for the best."

"I'm glad to hear that, Fluff." He said. "He really seemed like a nice guy and you looked good together."

"What are you talking about, Slick?" She said releasing a chuckle. Nick immediately turn to look at her, a hopeful feeling on his chest. "We just needed some closure. Is not that we ended up on bad terms but I guess it was necessary to talk about what happened. We didn't get the chance to do it before because I moved in here."

Nick just stared at her with a little of delight in his eyes. "Well Fluff, as long as you are happy". He sounded more cheerful.

She then jumped to his side of the car and hugged him around the neck. "Thank you." She told him against his shoulder.

The day went by quickly and by the end of their shift they were back in the car. This time it was Judy who was driving to Nick's place. He was quiet and pensive the whole time.

"There you go, Slick." She said. "Safe and sound."

"I was thinking." He said with a little hesitance for not knowing how she was going to react. "Do you want to come in for coffee or something? It still early and you can finally see my place."

"Office Wilde, that is _so_ cliché." She joked and hopped out of the car and followed him to the entrance.

The inside of his apartment was actually nicer than she thought it would be. The living room consisted of one large loveseat (probably designed for medium-sized felines), a coffee table and a bookshelf. She could tell that he was very clean and organized and praise him for that.

"Thank you, Carrots." He was smiling but she could tell he was nervous. "I'm glad you like it. So, coffee? Water? Beer?"

"Water would be fine, thank you." She saw Nick walk into the kitchen. "I shouldn't have drunk that much last night, I woke up a lot more tired than usual." She followed Nick to the kitchen, he was pouring water into two cups.

Nick's mind was revolving with thoughts. He was sure Judy was about to lay him down easy last night before they were interrupted by Tom. However, they did not get back together. Surely that did not mean she wanted something with Nick, after all she said her career was first, maybe she is not interested on being in a relationship with anyone. He saw Judy at the kitchen's door leaning onto the door frame.

"I'm glad you're feeling better today and don't have the need for alcohol, Fluff." He said, walking towards her and offering the cup.

"Har, har." She smiled but rolled her eyes, accepting the cup. She started nibbling at it and then look up at Nick. "So…" she encouraged him.

"So…?" He looked expectantly at her.

"You wanted me to come in here..." she retorted, speaking slowly. She was getting a little bit confused. She had this feeling that Nick was going to confess something important to her. Maybe interest, attraction… Love? But then he had seemed so happy when he believed she was back together with her ex. Now, he invited her to come in. She could not make out what was going on but she would not make another move without being certain.

"Oh, yes, yes. I did ask you to come in, yes." Realization came to him. He gestured to the couch in the living room. "L-let's sit down, OK?" Judy obeyed.

"Is everything OK, Slick?" she asked, now curious.

"Yes, everything is fine. I just want to talk to you about something that has been in my head for quite a while now." They both sat on his long couch and put their cups on the coffee table. They were side by side but facing each other, keeping a little distance between them. "I don't even know where to begging." He said massaging the back of his neck with one paw.

"You know you can tell me anything, right?" She said. She could see he was having a hard time.

"I know, I know." He paused, looked into her eyes, cleared his throat and closed the distance between them.

"Judy." The sole mention of her name send a shiver through her body, he almost never called her Judy. Nick continued. "I always tell you how you impacted my life and changed me for the better and I mean it. You inspired me to try. Something I had given up a long time ago. You are the most incredible mammal I have ever met. Sometimes I wonder how can you be real." Judy was lost for words and kept a poker face but inside she could feel her heart pounding. Nick took her hands in his. "You're kind, smart, determined and fearless. I admire you so much."

"Nick…" she almost whispered but Nick continued.

"Judy, I know I am just a fox." He lowered his sight to their hands. There was a big size difference but he didn't care about their differences, he hoped neither did she. "But I can't keep my feelings inside anymore." He locked sight with her and put a paw on her cheek. "I love you, Judy." Her heart skipped a beat. "I've been in love with you for so long that I can't even remember a time when I didn't feel like this." He put his other paw on her other cheek, holding her face and lowering his until they were just a few inches apart.

Judy thought she was dreaming for she couldn't believe what she just heard, she wanted to lean in for a kiss but first she also wanted to take something off her chest.

"Nick." He looked at her determined to accept any outcome, brushing slightly her cheeks with his thumbs. Judy put her paws on his wrists. "You are not _just_ a fox. You are amazing. You're witty, charming, brave and so incredibly handsome. I'm lucky just for having you in my life." She leaned into his left paw and close his eyes for a little bit savoring the feeling of his touch on her face, then she look back at him. "I love you so much, Nicholas Wilde."

They stayed staring at each other for what felt like ages but it was only for a few seconds. Nick sighted in relief of hearing those last words from Judy. He truly was not expecting her to feel the same way. He closed the space between the two, he put one paw behind her head and the other one on her lower back and pressed his lips to hers.

The kiss was slow and clumsy since Judy could barely move trying to process what was finally happening and Nick was so nervous that he was actually shaking. They broke the kiss and chuckled at each other, happiness showing on their faces. Judy put her arms around Nick's neck and they went for another kiss.

This one was more passionate. Their lips claiming what was for so long desired, their tongues savoring each other, playing curiously inside their mouths. They slowed down after a while. Judy swore her heart could be seen moving outside her chest even through her vest. When they separated from their kiss, they hugged each other strongly. Nick wishing she would never leave his arms.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter VIII

"You have no idea how long I've been dreaming to do that." Nick said referring to their kisses. "All this feels surreal, Judy."

"I do, I feel the same way." She buried her head in his chest. "I mean I always hoped you could see me as more than your friend, but I certainly was not expecting for you to feel the same way as I do."

"Are you kidding me, Judy?" Nick lifted her face and leveled with her. "You are the most beautiful mammal I have ever seen. Inside and out. I _am_ the lucky one here."

Without breaking the hug, Nick leaned back until his head reached the armrest of the couch. Judy was still buried in his chest as they both lay on Nick's couch. Judy was caresing his chest softly while Nick was doing the same to her head and ears.

"Nick, when did you realize you had feelings for me?"

Nick knew the answer. "Well, I started to develop feelings for you when you asked me to be your partner." Judy remembered that day very well. "But I didn't realize it until I started to miss you, you know… when we didn't see each other for a while." He saw Judy's face saddened by that thought. "Hey, Carrots. That's in the past."

She smiled at him. "I remember I was so nervous when I gave you the application. I didn't wanna seem so obvious, you know?"

"What? You liked me already?" He was pleasantly surprised.

"Can you believe that? It took less than 48 hours for me to surrender to your charm." She mocked.

"I'm serious, rabbit!" He had a big smile and was trying to tickle her.

"Me too!" She squeaked trying to get away from his hold.

They were now just sitting side by side and Judy got more serious. "I started to have feelings for you when you stood up for me, when Bogo asked for my badge. No one had ever done that for me before. And then you opened up to me in the sky tram… but I also didn't realize it until I was back at Bunnyburrow. I missed you too." They were now holding hands. "Now, don't get me wrong. I didn't ask you to join the force because I liked you. I really did picture you as a good cop and as my partner."

"We do make a pretty good team."

Nick and Judy spent a few minutes talking about them and how now that they became a couple they would call each other boyfriend and girlfriend.

"Judy Hopps is my _girlfriend_." Nick said, liking how that sounded. "Wow."

"You make it sound so weird." Judy chuckled but she did like the idea. "And to think that you wanted to ditch me when we met."

"I did." He admitted laughing. "But not so much. A part of me was having fun following you around, making you waste time… and to be completely honest, another part of me wanted to _look_ at you." Seeing her confusion he went on. "I liked… well, I _still_ like how you look in uniform. In fact, I have a confession to make."

"A confession." Judy repeated. "What is it?"

"When I first saw you I thought you looked so beautiful and sexy and adorable in that uniform that I just stared at you for I don't know how long." Nick was remembering with a small smile.

"Nick, I remember when you first saw me and you didn't stare at me at all." Judy didn't know why Nick had to lie. "You were pulling your little hustle, remember?"

"That's not the first time I saw you, Carrots." Judy raised an eyebrow, confusion all over her face. "You were across the ice cream shop writing tickets and I was on the other sidewalk and I just couldn't help but look at you. I was so distracted that a truck almost ran over me."

Judy remembered that. It was the sound of the truck's horn that made her turn and see Nick for the first time. She had a bashful smile on her face but she couldn't think of what to say so she just hugged him and they laid on the couch again.

"I wish we could stay like this forever." Judy began. "But I have to go."

"I know." Nick said pouting. "But... you know you don't have to go though, you have a spare uniform at the cruiser."

"You're right, but... I don't know."

"Stay." he begged.

"Are you sure?"

"Please, Judy."

"OK."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter IX

Judy was a little nervous, she didn't know what _staying_ implied. She fantasized many times of her and Nick being _together_. She wanted him, so much, but she was not sure if Nick would want her _now_.

Nick read her expression and could tell she was a little troubled. "Judy, you know I'm not asking you to stay to make anything happen. We can take this as slow as you want. I don't want you to think we are moving too fast."

Judy looked at him and seemed lost in thought for a while. After a few moments she spoke. "Nick, it took us months to finally admit our feelings for each other." She rose up to look at him directly in the eyes. "I don't think we are taking this fast enough."

Nick rose up too and met her lips. Their paws were now all over their bodies. Judy was grabbing Nick's shoulders, ears and back. He was seizing her ears and her face but as the kiss got heated he started lowering his paws until they were at her butt. Nick pressed and squeezed Judy's ass and let a low and feral sounding growl leave his throat. Judy moaned softly at his firm touch while trying to undo his tie.

"Oh, Carrots. This is better than anything I imagined." He said and he was truly delighted with her body. "You have no idea how much I want you." He paused a little. "Judy, listen. Like I said, I didn't ask you to stay because I have an ulterior motive. Are you sure you want this?"

Judy was moved by Nick's genuine concern. "You are the sweetest, you know that?" Nick didn't say anything, he was just looking at her unable to stop smiling. "Of course I want this, Nick. I want you."

Nick sat up and got up the couch carrying Judy with him to his bedroom. She had wrapped her legs around his waist and had her arms on his shoulders. Nick laid her down gently on the bed, he got on top of her and kiss her. He was holding his weight on one elbow while the other paw was on her hip.

Judy finally removed Nick's tie and broke the kiss to start unbuttoning his shirt. When she opened it she was rewarded with a spectacular view. She had never seen Nick shirtless. His chest was toned and his abs were ripped. It looked like all the training he had endure the last months had benefited more than his arms and shoulders.

"Like what you see?" He teased her.

Judy blushed. She hadn't realized she had been staring with her mouth half open. She dropped her ears to try to hide her embarrassment but then she thought she didn't have to because she _did_ like what she was seeing. She started caressing the front of his torso, without breaking eye contact.

"I do." Sincerity flowing from her words. She then pulled him and rolled him so that now she was on top of him. He removed her vest and tossed it to the floor, to his surprise, it was heavier than it looked like. He then rested his paws on her tights.

Judy untucked her own shirt and pull it over her head, revealing a black sports bra. She gave Nick an apologetic smile. He wished she had prepared and worn something special. After all, this was their first time together.

"Sorry, not the sexiest lingerie." She said, suddenly feeling insecure. "This is what I use for work and I didn't know..."

Nick sat up, put his paws behind her and pull her close. " _I_ think it is very sexy." He was staring at her eyes, then he smirked. "Plus, I'm gonna take it off anyway." Judy's reassuring smile gave him the green light he needed to remove the piece of clothing covering her chest.

Nick was captivated as he caressed the white fur on Judy's chest. It was the softest thing he had ever touched. He then pressed his muzzle against her neck and started kissing moving down to her shoulders. When he got to her breasts he focused his attention on one of her nipples. He kissed it gently and licked it slowly.

"Ohhhh!" Judy couldn't help herself.

The pleasure only grew when Nick moved to her other nipple and kept stroking the other one with his fingers. She just couldn't wait any longer. She reached out to grab Nick's belt and started to unfasten it. Nick took the hint and helped her.

She got off from him to let him remove his pants and underwear while she stripped off all of her remaining clothes.

At the sight of their naked bodies they just embraced each other in a tight hug, then Nick pushed Judy lightly so she was now on her back. Nick could not believe his eyes. Judy was lying naked on his bed and was going to be his.

Somehow this kicked his predatory instinct in. " _Mine_." He thought. His paws grabbed her wrists and pinned them to the bed while his lips kissed her neck and chest. He slowed down and moved his hands to her hips, he was now kissing her abs and was moving lower until his muzzle rested between her thighs.

Judy was breathing heavily with anticipation. She could feel Nick's hot breath on her folds. She closed her eyes and gave in to Nick, opening her legs to welcome him. When she felt his long tongue savoring her sex, an electrifying wave of pleasure traveled through her body.

Nick put Judy's legs on his shoulders and took a thigh with each of his paws. His tongue never breaking contact, moving rhythmically up and down, in and out. Judy's moans where like music to his ears. Hearing her and tasting her were arousing him in ways he could not control. He then started licking hard on her clithoris.

"Nick!" Judy whimpered, out of breath. She knew what was coming. Her body went hard, her legs locked around Nick's neck, her hips pushed up and her soft moans became groans of pleasure. Tasting her orgasm made Nick felt like he was going savage.

As she started to relax after the rollercoaster of satisfaction, Judy pull Nick closer to her and they started making out. She could taste herself in his mouth and felt his member pressed against her. She stretched her hand to grab his penis and stroke it up and down.

Judy was not surprised about his size. She had done her research on foxes since she started fantasizing about Nick. She had watched videos and looked at pictures. Still, seeing the real one sent a shiver through her body.

She asked Nick to lay on his back. He put a pillow under his head and was looking forward to feel whatever Judy would do to him.

Her paw was at the base of his cock moving up and down. Without stopping this movement, she put her lips on the tip and went down sucking and swirling her tongue around his member.

Nick moaned hard and seized Judy's ears by the base with one paw. This act made Judy's toes curl. She let him know with a gesture that it was OK to pull them. Hard. Nick complied only to be rewarded with Judy's throat. She had took him entirely.

Nick could not stand to wait any longer. He needed to take her soon. He lifted her head by the ears. Her mouth was open and her eyes half closed with a wanting look. He didn't need to say anything to her.

Judy got on her knees and mounted his lover fox. First she was only rubbing her sex against his now enlarged cock. When her opening reached the tip she used her hand to position herself and slowly started to take him. Half way down she pulled up and then went down again. She continued this motion slowly, taking more and more of his dick until it was all inside her. She went on faster and harder. It felt better than anything she had felt before. Nick's hands were on her nipples and on her ass.

Only a few minutes after ridding Nick's cock, she felt another orgasm invading her body. Her whole self just melted on top of Nick. He felt her inner walls pressing on his penis, she was so tight. He had been afraid she wouldn't be able to take him but clearly he had been wrong.

Before she could recover, Nick got on top, never leaving her insides. She was now on her back. He grabbed the back of her knees and pushed them forward so that they were almost reaching her shoulders. He then thrusted his member inside of her and was pounding in and out of her. Judy was ecstatic. She had lost count of how many times she had cum. Nick was going faster and harder on her.

Nick thanked nature for needing to knot in order to ejaculate, otherwise he would have been done a long time ago. It was only when Judy was totally satisfied that he let go of her legs and supported his body with his elbows so that he could be closer to her.

He kissed her intensely, his thrusts slower now. "Judy, I need to…"

"Do it." She knew he was talking about his knot. She had one arm around his neck and the other one on his cheek.

"Are you sure? I don't want to hurt you."

"Please, Nick. I want _all_ of you."

He didn't hesitate. He started to push harder and harder, enveloping her in deep kisses. He then hammered hard until his knot entered her wet mound. At the same time he broke the kiss and bit her neck hard while filling her insides with hot semen. A primitive groan could be heard coming from him.

This provoked one last orgasm from Judy. Her canal literally sucking out more and more of his seed. She was breathless and exhausted but also immensely content. She couldn't help smiling.

Nick let her neck go. They were nose to nose, looking at each other. They knew they were going to stay 'stuck' way for a while.

"I love you, Judy." He pecked her forehead and cheeks until he got a few laughs from her.

"And I love you, Nick." She closed her eyes. " _That_ was amazing."

" _You're_ amazing."


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter X

They ordered some dinner since they didn't feel like going out. It was getting late and they had to go to work the next day. They were now sitting at the table talking about their partnership at work. They didn't know if dating would be a problem so they decided not to tell anyone yet until they knew for sure their jobs were not in jeopardy.

"What about my family?" Judy asked Nick.

He looked nervous. "We can keep it a secret from them too, if you want." He offered.

"I want to tell them." She said quickly. "But only if that's OK with you."

"I think it's OK, Carrots." He said, but he still looked nervous. "They're your family and if you want to tell them then my opinion should not change that." He sounded like he really meant that. "How do you think they'll take it, though?"

"To be honest I don't know." she replied. "I know they like you. They know you protect me and keep me safe on the job, but now that you are my _boyfriend_ I'm not sure how they will react." She saw Nick with a worried look. "Nick, it doesn't matter to me what they think of us, I want to tell them because I just don't want to keep this a secret from them. I'm not looking for their approval."

They returned to bed after a few minutes and cuddled each other. Nick was only wearing boxers and Judy had borrowed one of his t-shirts and it was of course oversized for her. Nick wrapped Judy with his tail and she fell asleep while rubbing it. He kissed her forehead and ears before closing his eyes.

" _Please, don't let this be a dream._ " Was his last thought before falling into unconsciousness.

The next morning Nick was waking up from a dreamless night to the smell of something delicious. For a moment he feared he had had indeed a dream because he didn't see Judy next to him, but he discarded that idea when he heard her in the kitchen.

He got up and followed the smell. He saw her still wearing the oversized t-shirt, on a stool in front of the stove.

"Morning, Slick!" She had turned a little but was still cooking. "I hope you don't mind me using your kitchen, I just wanted to make you some breakfast."

Nick approached her and hugged her from behind, resting his muzzle on her shoulder. He could see now she was making pancakes.

"I don't mind at all, but you didn't have to do it."

"I know, like I said, I wanted to." She said as she flipped a pancake.

"I didn't even know you could cook." He went to sit and took everything with him to set the table for them.

"I'm full of surprises, Wilde." They both laugh a little. Nick was just sitting there, watching her cook about ten pancakes, then she joined him at the table. "I really hope you like them. I'm a little out of practice. I hadn't cooked anything in a long time." She said while putting some pancakes on her plate.

"Oh Carrots, these are delicious". Nick was really enjoying them. "Is there anything you are not good at?"

"Oh hush." She was smiling.

"I'm serious. Why don't you cook more often?" He asked but immediately knew the answer. "Oh, yeah. There's not kitchen in your 'shoe box'." She just nodded and kept on eating.

Nick was now lost in thought. He had asked Judy to be his roommate ever since he found out where she lived. She had liked the idea but she was in a one year contract, however, if he was not mistaken, that was about to expire. He didn't know if he should bring that out now that they were a couple. It would not be like they were roommates, they would be _living together_.

" _But isn't that what you want?_ " He asked himself. " _Being with her. Starting and ending your day together, cuddling at night… and the pancakes are definitely a perk. No, it's too soon..._ "

"Nick, are you ok? You have been staring into space for like five minutes."

"Move in with me." He blurted out. The words left his mouth before he could stop himself.

"What?"

"What?" He echoed after her almost regretting saying anything. "No, wait. Why not? We talked about being roommates before."

Judy was contemplating the idea. She had agreed to being his roommate. The only thing that had stopped her was her contract. "You don't think it's too fast?" Before he could answer she added. "Wait. Do you mean living together as roommates or as a couple?"

"Does it matter?" He replied, now sure of his decision. "If we weren't a couple we would have done it without hesitating. You are my best friend who also happen to be my girlfriend and I'd love it if we can be roommates."

"You're right." She was totally convinced. "It makes sense. Although the reason I was asking is because of the distribution."

"Distribution?"

"I mean, if we live together as roommates each one would have their own room, but as a couple we would share one, right?"

"Well, what do you want?"

"I want to share, of course." She was being completely honest.

"Me too." He said. "We have about a month to figure out all the details."

"Wow, look at you, Slick." She teased him. "Who would've thought you'd be so committed."

Nick rolled his eyes but was smiling. "Judy, for you I'd be anything."

"I just want you to be yourself." They share a few kisses and finish their breakfast in silence.

"Ok." Nick said. "You go ahead and get in the shower and I'll clear the table and bring your bag with your clothes."

While Judy was in the shower, she heard a knock on the door.

"It's me!" The unasked question got Judy rolling her eyes in amusement. "I'm just gonna leave a clean towel." He opened the door and entered. "Unless, you want me to join you, of course."

"Thank you, Nick." She paused for a moment. "And yes, you can join me if you want."

"R-really?" Judy snort at hearing his nervous reaction.

"Nevermind, Slick." She had turned the water off and now her head was leaning out of the shower. "I'm done." She stretched an arm and took the towel from Nick's paws. She then stepped out, the towel wrapped around her torso, giving Nick a nice view of her shoulders and most of her legs. He just stood there looking like an idiot, his muzzle hanging open.

Judy stood on her toes and give him a peck on the cheek and left him.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter XI

They had had a very good day. A few calls that led to a couple of arrests but nothing too dangerous. Judy was actually very impress that their patrol had been so normal. She was a little bit worried about things being different, even awkward but to her surprise everything felt exactly the same except for the fact that she and Nick glanced at each other every now and then.

While filing reports, at the end of the day, Judy was waiting for Nick to finish. She had everything ready so she spent the last few minutes just staring at her partner sitting next to him.

"Do I have something on my face?" Nick asked Judy with a mocking tone. "Or am I just incredibly handsome?"

" _Incredibly handsome, definitely._ " Judy just laugh a little. "I'll just wait in the car."

They were now parked in front of Judy's building. She was dying to kiss him but didn't know if it would be appropriate to do it in the cruisier. They didn't want to draw any unwanted attention.

"Can I walk you to your door?" Nick asked and Judy could not be more keen to agree. Once they were at her door, Judy thought it was safe to display some love since they were alone. She hugged him strongly from the middle and he returned the hug almost immediately. Soon they were kissing each other, hard and passionately, finally being themselves after a day of hiding their feelings from others.

"Do you wanna come in?" She said breathlessly after they broke the kiss. They were still hugging and their faces were just an inch apart. Still, Judy managed to open the door. "My noisy neighbors are out of town and we have tomorrow off."

"That's very tempting, Judy." He said in a very low voice that made her shiver. Then, without previous warning, he lifted her bridal style and walked into her small place.

They both sat on her bed, which was considerable smaller than Nick's. They were making out and things were heating up quite fast. Before they knew it, their clothes went off and they were engaging in love making. This time it wasn't as intense as the first time when they both wanted to release the physical tension that had built up over months. This time, they took their time. It was more thoughtful and conscious but not less passionate. They both fell asleep tangled with each other.

Nick woke up first with Judy by his side. She was curled up between his arms and tail. Nick felt like he could stay there forever, just watching her sleep. At the thought of that, Judy woke up.

"I think I can get used to this." She said after yawning. "Waking up with you, I mean."

"You'll have to." He said softly. "Remember we will be living together and I'm not letting you go."

"Never?" She asked.

"Never." He promised.

Her phone's ringtone broke the special moment.

"Have you ever heard of silent mode?"

"Shh, it's my parents." She put on a t-shirt and pressed the green icon on her screen. Bonnie and Stu Hopps greeted her at the same time.

They were calling to let her know that her sister's wedding would be in seven days and they gave her all the details. It sounded like all of the preparations were ready. That was very easy considering many weddings had taken place at the Hopp's farm. Judy was just nodding. She didn't know why she needed to know all this, she was not going to be a part of the wedding since she could not attend the rehearsals.

"It all sounds great, guys." She wanted to hang up to be with her fox.

"Oh Judy, before I forget." Her mother began. "We thought it would be a great idea if you bring Nick along." Judy looked briefly at Nick, who looked pleasantly surprised.

"Yes, that way we could finally meet him in person." Her father said. Judy was just smiling at them. "He can even bring a date."

"Oh, yes." Judy looked at Nick who seemed nervous. "About Nick…"

Nick widen his eyes and started to shake his hands and head. Judy muted the call.

"Sorry, Nick. I have to tell them. I don't want them to find out at the wedding." She said very quickly.

"Fine." Nick sighted. Judy unmuted the call.

"Is everything ok, sweetheart?"

"Yes, everything is fine." Judy thought she should just get it over with and hope for the best. "Uhhmm, I-I wanted to tell you that Nick and I are dating now."

Their parents seemed confused.

"Huh." Was all their parents could mutter.

"Mom?... Dad?" Judy was starting to get worried. She was frowning now.

"Well, I can't say I'm surprised." His father said, scratching his head.

"Yeah, well a little." Bonnie said. "You know, after what happened with Gideon Gray, it seems strange, but I guess you have always been our little weirdo." She was now smiling. "Are you happy, dear?"

Judy smiled, their reaction was not as bad as she feared it would be. "I'm actually very happy. I've liked him for a while and I can't wait for you to meet him."

"Well, now we have another thing to look forward to this weekend." Stu said, smiling as well.

They all said their goodbyes and hang up.

"That went well." Nick said. "Don't take this the wrong way but I was expecting a totally different reaction."

"I know what you mean. They have come a long way."

"Carrots, can I ask you something?" He inquired carefully. "I'm not really sure If it's a question. Is about what your mother said. She mentioned that something happened to you with a Gideon Gray. Who's that?"

"Oh." Judy had thought about telling Nick of her incident concerning Gideon, but she had decided not to. Now it seemed like she was going to have to. "Gideon is a fox."

You dated a fox before!?" Nick was shocked, the thought of Judy with another mammal was bad enough, but with another fox, it was just inconceivable. He could barely contain his frown. Judy could barely contain her laughter.

"Jealous much?" She had a smirk printed all over her face.

Nick realized his reaction was primal, he was not actually jealous, Judy's past was in the past, it was just some instinct he could not control. "No, I'm not jealous." He sighted. "You never told me you've dated a fox before."

"I haven't, dumb fox." Judy saw Nick's body relax. "It's a long story."

"Now I'm really curious." Nick took her hand. "Still, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

Judy knew he really meant that and decided he deserved to know.

"I'll tell you." They got comfortable at the bed. They were sitting with their backs to the wall and their legs under the covers. "When I was nine years old there was this bully back at home. He was a few years older than me and he used to terrorize almost every kid in school."

"The bully was this fox Gideon?" Nick asked to confirm.

"Yeah." She replied and continued with her story. "Anyway, one day I saw him taking some tickets away from my friends so I told him to leave them alone and return the tickets. He threatened me but I told him I wasn't scared of him so he pushed me to the ground." She paused a little. "I kicked him to make him back away but he got angry and withdrew his claws and grazed me."

She took Nick's hand and put it on her cheek, moving her hair up so he could feel her scars. Nick was speechless. He was clearly feeling three claws marks on her beautiful face. He was about to say something but Judy continued speaking.

"Then he pinned my head to the ground, got very close and told me to remember that moment when thinking about being something more than a stupid carrot farmer." She was looking down at her hands. "I didn't want to appear week in front of my friends, I played tough but inside I was dead scared."

"Judy, I had no idea…" He began, but didn't really know what to say. "This actually explains a lot." Nick was starting to feel guilty about the way he had acted when they were at the press conference. "I'm so sorry, Judy. I didn't mean to frighten you. I mean, you had a reason to be scared . Why didn't you tell me before?"

"I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to think that I was justifying myself for acting the way I did." She answered him and continued. "What happened was my fault, no excuses." She sighted. "When I realized how much I had hurt you and made life worse for predators, I couldn't live with myself. That's why I turned my badge over to Bogo and returned to Bunnyburrow. I thought there was nothing I could do to fix my mistakes let alone win you over to be my friend again."

"I would have understood, Judy. The only reason I got upset is because, even though I was not completely aware at the time, I liked you and it hurt that you wanted me away and..."

"It all worked out for the best." She reassured him. "I came across Gideon when I returned home." Nick raised his head to look at her. "Turns out he's my parents' business partner now and when he saw me, the first thing he did was to apologize to me and acknowledge his mistakes. After all those years he did it and it felt so good."

"Funny thing is that it was he who accidentally mentioned that nighthowlers were flowers." She was now smiling. "I drove here immediately and I knew I had to find you and apologize even if you didn't forgive me, you deserved it."

"When I told you I couldn't fix things without you I didn't mean I couldn't do it alone or with the help of another police officer." She took his hand. "I just needed… well, _you_."

"Thank you for telling me everything, Carrots." He hugged her tight.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter XII

The week went by pretty quickly or so Nick thought. Even when Judy's parents seemed cool with the idea of them dating, he was still feeling anxious about meeting the whole family. He knew Judy had hundreds of siblings and added to this were the aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews, not to mention the groom's family…

"Judy!" He was finding himself short of breath. They were both at Nick's place getting ready to go. He found Judy in front of the bathroom mirror on a stool. She was wearing a light blue dress that reached her knees. Suddenly he was breathless for a different reason.

"Are you freaking out again?" Nick could only nod. "Come here." She was now hugging him. "Look if you are worried about meeting a lot of rabbits, then there's nothing to worry about, you won't meet my whole family, just my parents and a few siblings."

"We are still talking about hundreds of rabbits." Nick complained.

She proceeded to explain Nick that since rabbits were well aware of the problem of having hundreds of relatives, weddings and important events were only attended by littermates and close siblings.

"So, if you count my littermates, a few other siblings, their mates or dates, my parents and grandparents, close friends... and of course the same thing on the grooms side." She was quickly doing the math in her head. "We are talking about 150 to 200 guests in total. And of course we won't talk to all of them."

"Ok." This new information added to the scent of his bunny made Nick feel relieved. "By the way you look gorgeous in that dress."

"Thank you, Slick." She then realized he was still in his boxers. "Now, get ready. We have to leave in 10 minutes if we want to make it in time."

They had rented a car to drive to Bunnyburrow. Nick had everything loaded on the trunk. This was going to be their first trip together, they had packed for three days but Bogo had actually give them five days off. They wanted to use the other two days to look for apartments after deciding that a new place would be the best option.

The road from Zootopia to Bunnyburrow was clear. Nick was looking outside the window form the passenger seat. He noticed how the forest disappeared and instead he was now appreciating fields of vegetables, orchids and enormous barns. They seemed to go on forever. A big sign told him that they were now in Judy's hometown.

"Wow. How many farmer families live here?" Nick was amazed with all of the space and the fresh air.

"In Bunnyburrow? Just my family." Judy said casually.

"You mean, all of this belongs to your parents?" Nick was incredulous. "How can they manage _this_ much?" He gestured outside the window.

"Not just my parents." Judy explained. "Well, only at first. They moved in here when they got married and started a farm business out of nothing. They're really hard workers so with the time the business grew and continue to grow until they almost sold half of their land when they couldn't handle things anymore, but they had this idea that when we become old enough, we get our share of land and each one is responsible for it." She was now taking a right turn onto a dirt road. Nick could see a huge building at the end of it.

"What did you do with yours?" He wondered if Judy had even received her share.

"I still have it." She answered like it was something obvious. "I made a deal with one of my brothers. He helps me take care of it and we share the profit. It's actually something that some of my siblings did when they got married and moved out."

Nick was bewildered. There was so much he didn't know about his girlfriend. He was just looking at her with a puzzled look.

"So you _are_ a carrot farmer!" He teased her.

"See? That's why I never told you!" Judy sounded mortified. Nick could not hold a laugh.

"I'm kidding!" Nick decided to cut her some slack. "I guess you are more like a businesswoman."

"No, I don't know much about the business." They were almost at the end of the dirt road and Nick could see the Hopp's house. "Anyway, here we are."

Judy stopped the car. The driveway looked like a supermarket's parking lot. They left the suitcases in the truck, they were going to unpack after the wedding. Nick just took the gift and gave it to Judy. He was putting on his jacket now.

"How do I look?" He was wearing a gray linen suit, white shirt and blue tie. The attire was perfect for a daytime wedding.

"I already told you, you look handsome." She rolled her eyes but she wasn't lying.

Nick offered his arm and they walked around the house to the back side. The place was gigantic. They could see the altar placed at the far side of the yard and white chairs for all the guests. Most of them were already seated since the ceremony was going to start in 10 minutes. On the other side there were white tents.

Judy saw one of her younger sisters approach them.

"Jude!" The rabbit gave her a hug. Judy had to let go of Nick's arm to return the hug. "I'm so glad to see you!"

"Me too, Jenny." She then took Nick's hand and introduce them. Jenny was one of Judy's littermates.

"It's so nice to finally meet Judy's boyfriend." She said with a smile. Nick returned the compliment. "Let's go and sit down now."

The ceremony was short. After it ended, Nick and Judy went to find her parents for a formal introduction.

"Mom. Dad." She began. "This is Nick. My partner at the ZPD and boyfriend. This are my parents"

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you in person, Mrs. Hopps. Mr. Hopps." He shook hands with each of them. Bonnie was smiling but Stu had slight frown on his face which didn't go unnoticed by Nick.

"We are very happy for both of you." Bonnie said. "And please call me Bonnie."

"Yes, call me Stu." Nick nodded. "Nick, can we talk for a moment?" He gestured Nick to go with him.

Judy couldn't repress her giggling at Nick's nervous expression. "You'll be fine. I'll wait for you at the table."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter XIII

Stu took Nick inside the house, they were now in the biggest kitchen Nick had ever seen. It was even bigger than the ones he had seen in hotels or restaurants.

Nick decided to pay a compliment. "This house is amazing, Mr. Hopps, uh, Stu." He was still a little bit nervous. "I'm very impressed." This was his first time meeting a girlfriend's parents. To his relive, Stu was smiling, nodding and looking at the kitchen.

"Thank you, Nick." Stu said. "If you think this is impressive, wait till you see the rest."

He then changed his voice to a more 'business like' one. "Now, Nick. I wanted to talk to you about Judy." Before Nick could say anything, he continued. "I have, as you know, many daughters and sons and I can tell you that all of them are different in their own way and me and my wife love all of them equally." He made a pause. Nick was looking at him attentively. "Judy has always been special. I can tell you no other of her siblings has made us worry about them like she has."

Nick could only smile, he knew exactly what Stu meant. He let him continue.

"We've always respected her choices, even if they scare us. We trust that she knows what's right for her and I guess where I'm going with is that I want to thank you in behalf of me and my wife." Nick opened his eyes wide, surprised by the turn of the conversation. "Judy has always spoken highly of you and has told us about the many times you have saved her life. You probably know that in the past we weren't fans of foxes, given to what happened to her." Nick just nodded. "But trust that we now think differently and are very happy our Judy is with someone that can protect her because a rabbit certainly couldn't." Stu was looking at Nick with a paternal look on his face.

"Stu… I-I don't know what to say." Nick was truly speechless and touched by Stu's words. "Thank you for trusting me. Please know that I love Judy more than anything and would never hurt her. I would always protect her, although you should know that she has saved my life more times than I have saved hers."

"Oh, I believe you, I know my daughter." Stu said simply. "What makes you two great partners is that you're there for each other."

Stu and Nick got out of the house and spotted Judy talking with a group of rabbits. Stu went to find Bonnie at their table and Nick headed towards Judy. When she heard him coming, she ran to him.

"Are you ok?" She was clearly concerned. "What did my father say?"

"Everything is fine, Carrots." Nick was as cool as ever. "You know? I think coming here was a great idea."

During the reception, Nick and Judy had a great time. So far all of Judy's relatives seemed fine with her dating Nick and if they thought otherwise, they hid it very well. The food, which was kind of like brunch, was excellent for both prey and the few predators that were present. Nick and Judy had a great time talking with each other and dancing until they were really tired.

By the afternoon almost all guests were gone and the catering staff was clearing the backyard. Nick and Judy went to pick up their suitcases from the car and this time they got into the house from the front door. They stepped into a 'lobby'. Judy was giving Nick instructions on how to get to their bedroom.

"To the right there's the living rooms and the bedrooms for litters A to D and through that door you can see…" Nick couldn't keep up and by the time Judy had finished the quick 'tour' around the house, he had forgotten most of the information and didn't even know how to go back to the front door.

"Don't worry, Slick. Once you get familiar with the place it will be easy for you to move around." She then stopped in front of a door. "We're here. This is my room."

The room was big with several beds, wardrobes, rugs and dressers.

"Are we sharing the room with someone else?" Nick was confused.

"No, you dumb fox." Judy was giggling. "My female littermates and I used to share this room but they all have moved out."

"All of them?" Nick knew Judy had several sisters that were her littermates. "Did they all go for the 'big city dream' like you?"

"No, they all got married." Judy answered. "This has been just _my_ room for a while."

Nick wanted to ask Judy more questions. He wanted to know her opinion on marriage. Not because he wanted _that_ at the moment. Marriage didn't seem like a scary idea now that he was with Judy. But he thought having that discussion would have to wait until they had lived together for a while.

"Do you ever think about the future, Nick?" He was caught unguarded by Judy. "You know, marriage, kids and stuff like that?"

Nick had thought about it and he was sure he wanted to be with her but still he couldn't believe Judy was asking so casually as if she was asking his opinion on ice cream.

"Mmm… well, I do. I have. Sure, the thought has crossed my mind." He started babbling.

"Huh." She had a wondering look on her face. "Well, I guess is normal for most mammals." She then opened a suitcase and started to unfold some clothes.

" _That's it?_ " Nick thought. " _She just asks me out of nowhere and says nothing back?_ " Before Nick could ask her anything she started to change into something more casual and began talking about the plans for the rest of the day.

So far, Nick was a huge fan of Bunnyburrow. He loved the open spaces, the smell of country air and, opposite of what he believed, people were very nice. He was also surprised to see predator families living there, not as many as in Zootopia of course but they seemed happy and relaxed.

Judy took him on a walk by a lake. The scenery was beautiful. They sat there, on a rock by the lake for a while without talking. Judy was resting her head on his shoulder. Nick never felt so calm in his whole life. After a while they went downtown to have a late lunch/early dinner. The town was small but picturesque. They were at an outdoor restaurant just chatting and watching people walk by.

"I hope you are not too full." Judy said while stopping in front of what looked like a bakery shop.

They entered the shop and it was indeed a bakery. Nick's mouth was instantly watering with the smell inside. Behind the counter there was a red fox. He was just as tall as Nick but rounder and when he spoke he did it with a heavy southern accent.

"Howdy, Judy!" He greeted. "Your mom told me you'd be in town. I was gonna bring you some pies but now that you're here…" He then took a box and put it on the counter, it could easily have half a dozen pies inside.

"Wow! Thanks, Gideon." Judy said. "I want you to meet my boyfriend Nick. Nick, this is Gideon Gray."

Nick could not smile, as soon as he heard Judy called him by his name, his body had stiffen. He extended his hand to the fox and shook it as normal as he could, just nodding when Gideon greeted him.

However, it only took a few minutes for Nick to realize that Gideon was no longer the bully Judy had described. He seemed good natured, humble and kind. In the few minutes they were there a lot of people came to buy cakes, pies and cookies. Nick was excited to try the pies, they apparently were very popular.

Judy then took Nick to a field. It was getting late but it was bright enough for Nick to see that the land was for growing vegetables and there were many trees and bushes.

"This is my share of land." She said and gestured to everything around her. "I don't come here as often as I should but my brother keeps me up to date."

She took Nick's hand and led him to a big barn. They rested on the hay with the big doors open. They could see the sky was getting a darker blue and was filling up with stars.

"Carrots." He began. "Don't take this the wrong way but, why would you want to leave this place?" When he saw her questioning look he added. "I mean Zootopia is great, but this place is… beautiful."

"I know what you mean." She admitted. "I miss it a lot."

"Well, I'd love to visit more often." He blushed a little. "If that's ok with you, of course."

"I'd love that too." She was smiling at him. "Hey, do you see those bushes over there?" She pointed out of the barn. Nick nodded. "Those are blueberries and we can take as many as we want when we leave." If she was going to say something else, Nick couldn't care. He was hugging and kissing his perfect bunny.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter XIV

The days at Bunnyburrow went by too fast for the fox and rabbit couple and it was now time to go back to Zootopia. Several dozens of Hopps were outside the big house saying goodbye to Judy and Nick.

Bonnie and Stu hugged their daughter and even Nick before they got in the car. Nick wasn't expecting to feel this sad. He thought it was strange that he was feeling like leaving family because he hadn't even had a family for most of his life. He felt a lump in his throat.

"Nick, are you ok?" Judy asked him before starting the car.

Nick did not want to speak dreading his voice would break, he just smiled at her and looked away. Outside the window he could see it was a very bright morning. Judy took the hint and decided to give Nick some space. She knew that he was not blocking her, he just needed some time.

It wasn't until they had been driving for about half an hour that Nick spoke but he opted to talk about the apartment hunt they would do for the next two days. They had already agreed on a price range and location so now they were discussing the distribution. They both thought that it was important to have two bedrooms even if they would only need one, the other one could be an office or guest room and they also wanted to find one that accommodated their sizes.

Fortunately, Nick had a lot of contacts and had set some appointments, they were going to start that same day after lunch. Judy was very excited to say the least and Nick had even forgotten he was feeling sad.

They arrived at Nick's apartment, left their bags and went to return the rental car. After that, they were eating at a fast-food restaurant and were making some time until their first appointment.

"Now, Carrots." Nick said. "I know you are very excited to find a new apartment for us. I am too. But remember we have several places to check out. We want to see them all before we make a decision. And I want you to feel one hundred percent happy with whatever we chose so don't settle. If you don't fully like any of these options, we'll keep looking until we find the perfect place. You can stay with me if you have to leave your apartment."

"Awww, Nick." She cooed. "The same thing goes for you, if you are not comfortable with something I like, I want you to be honest with me because I won't be happy if you're not happy."

They looked at six different apartments during the time lapse of two days. Judy was making a list of pros and cons and so far the cons list for all places was longer. All of the apartments were either too big or too small for them. They didn't mind a little size difference but they knew the problems that came with having a toilet that was big enough for them to fall in it.

Still, Judy was trying not to be worried because they still had time to keep looking. Nick, on the other hand was a little pessimistic. He really wanted the perfect place for Judy and it looked like finding a place that was suitable for a fox and a rabbit was a big challenge.

The bright side was that Judy still had three weeks left at her current apartment. She had already spoken with her landlady and told her she would move out instead of renewing the contract. This put a little bit of pressure but they would dedicate their free time to work on it.

The duo went back to their routine. Nick picked up Judy in the morning and she drove him home by the end of the day. They had reached the agreement that they would not spend the night at each other's place until they move in together and they were enjoying the feeling of anticipation.

Work was really great, Bogo was assigning them harder cases and they knew that was a good sign. Most of the time they were actually assisting senior detectives on their cases and so far, they were making a really good impression.

No one at the ZPD knew about their relationship, but their co-workers were aware they were planning to move in together -as roommates- so both the fox and the rabbit had to deal with teasing and jokes about them. It looked like everyone wanted them to end up together.

However, they would graciously deny any kind of romantic relationship between them. They actually had an inside game. One day Judy would respond to her colleagues something like "Nah. His tail is too fluffy for my taste." And then spend all evening after work caressing Nick's tail or Nick would say a similar thing like "Are you kidding me? You think I like _this_ long ears?" and then when they were alone he would nibble them and tell Judy how much he loved them.

One day at roll call Bogo didn't assigned them anything and instead asked them to his office. They followed him upstairs, exchanging some nervous looks between them. They had no idea what Bogo wanted to tell them.

"Sit down." Bogo ordered in his usual manner. They obeyed and sat on the same seat. "Hopps. Wilde. I need to know if there is something going on between the two of you." He went straight to the point. Judy was trying her best not to look nervous but inside she could not help but think they were facing suspension or something worse. For Nick it was easier to pretend coolness, he had his usual smirk on his face.

"What do you mean, Sir?" Nick asked with a too innocent voice.

"Don't play dumb with me, Wilde!" Bogo bumped his fist on the desk and they both jumped and winced. They knew Bogo wasn't exactly angry but he was always intimidating. "Are you or are you not in a romantic relationship?"

The duo exchanged a dubious look. Judy signed and looked at his boss in the eyes.

"Y-yes, sir. We are."


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter XV

Bogo looked at the fox and the rabbit, sighted, opened a drawer and took out some papers. Nick, though he was not showing it, was worried like hell. He loved his job but also knew Judy loved hers and she had overcome too many obstacles to get it. He couldn't believe they were getting fired, he would not allow it.

"Sir, if you have to fire someone, it should be me." He put his paws on his chest. "We should have asked about fraternization rules, that was our mistake but please don't fire Judy, she is the best cop…"

"Shut your mouth, Wilde!" Bogo yelled. "I don't need you to tell me that. I am well aware the kind of cop Hopps is."

Judy was as worried as Nick but she didn't feel _so_ bad. She didn't regret being in a relationship with him and if that costed her job, well so be it. She had always put her career before her relationships but Nick was different. He was the most important thing in her life. If Bogo made her choose between Nick and being a cop, she would gladly find another job.

Bogo continued. "No one is getting fired. Especially Hopps." He was speaking now in a calmer way. Both Nick and Judy felt like a ton of weight was lifted from their shoulders. They couldn't articulate any words so they just let Bogo speak. "If I had to fire employees every time they hook up or date, I would be left with just half the staff." He sliced the papers he had taken out of the drawer across the table. "This are some forms you need to fill out explaining your relationship to HR. Although partners being in a relationship is not against our laws, there are some rules you should consider and…" He then looked at Judy, then at Nick. "There might be a problem, but I'm gonna let you decide what to do."

"What problem?" Said Nick arching an eyebrow.

Bogo suddenly seemed more relaxed, although this didn't mean he looked less scary. "Hopps. Congratulations, you have been promoted to Detective." Judy moved her hands to cover her mouth in surprise. "With your hard work, dedication and commitment to the job, I would have promoted you sooner. However, it was not up to me so you had to have at least a year of experience as an officer. Now..."

Nick gave Judy the strongest hug. Since Judy was in shock, she took several seconds to process what he was doing and return the hug.

"Congratulations, sweetheart." He said and kissed her cheek.

Bogo was looking at them like they had grown alien antennas on their heads. One thing was hearing they were a thing but seeing it seemed really strange.

"Ahem." The couple turned their attention to Bogo again. "Onto the problem I was referring to." Judy gulped and Nick frowned in concern. "One of the restrictions is that a partner cannot be under the direct supervision of the other partner if they are involved in a romantic relationship. This means that since Hopps is being promoted, I will have to assign you a different partner, Wilde. Or you can always work without one."

"Oh." Was all Nick could mutter. He sure would be sad to not work side by side with Judy, but it didn't matter. This was great news. "Well, who would you partner me with, Chief?"

Before Bogo could answer, Judy intervened.

"Chief, Bogo." She stood up on the chair. "I am very grateful for this opportunity but are you sure there is nothing we can do to remain partners?"

"The other option is to wait until Wilde reaches his one year as a police officer and then I could promote you both at the same time. Provided, of course, that you continue to work as good as you have until now. That way you could still remain partners." He looked at Nick who seemed confused. "Yes, Wilde. I also would have promoted you now but like I said it is not up to me so you have to wait."

Judy was smiling. "Great, we just have to wait a few months!" Her smile faded when she saw Nick shaking his head. "What?" She asked.

"I don't want you to wait, Carrots." He pulled her by the paws so she sat by his side again. "This is your career we are talking about. You can't put it on hold just for me."

"But Nick, I don't mind…"

"I know you don't mind." He reasoned and put one paw on her shoulder. "Don't worry. We'll be ok." His smile was sincere and reassuring.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter XVI

Nick took Judy to celebrate her promotion to their favorite bar. Since they had the weekend off and they had left the cruiser at the precinct, they were having some drinks. Nick could not stop laughing at the bunny. She was being extremely silly but she couldn't help it. She was just _very_ happy and she enjoyed making Nick laugh. They cheered and toasted for Judy who was drinking some shots.

"I think we should call it a night, Carrots." He managed to say. He hadn't drunk that much but he was feeling a little tipsy and was worried that Judy would get too drunk. "Let me take you home."

"What? No! Nick, I was just warming up." She said dragging a little bit the words out of her mouth while standing up on her seat. "Let's order a bottle and get really really drunk!" She said the last sentence while jumping but lost her balance and fell off the chair.

Nick stood up quickly to help her. The bunny was laughing on the floor. "Ok, Fluff." He helped her stand up. "That's right. Careful. Let's go now."

Nick decided to break the rule they had going on and took Judy to his place to make sure she'd be ok. They were still laughing on the taxi they took to Nick's home.

When they reached Nick's place, Judy sat on the couch while he fetched some water for them to drink. Judy was feeling better.

"Thank you, Slick." Judy said after drinking all of the water. "I'm starting to sober up."

Nick smiled at her and gave her a hug. "I am so proud of you, Carrots." He now held her at arm's reach, his paws on her shoulders. "And no. I'm not talking about your body's ability to process alcohol very fast, detective Hopps." He gave her a sly smile.

"And I'm proud of you, Nick." She held his face. "Remember that if it wasn't for those stupid rules we would've become detectives a long time ago."

"Yeah." Nick was smiling. He would not tell Judy but he also felt proud of himself. The past year had been the best of his life. For the first time he felt like he was making a difference in the world and he had grown a lot as a person. He had wanted that since he was a child but at some point along the way he had forgotten it.

He looked into Judy's eyes. That bunny had no idea what she meant to him. She had changed him without even asking or wanting him to change. He suddenly felt sad because he would not be by her side everyday. He remembered feeling something similar when he joined the Police Academy but at that time he was not fully aware that he loved her as more than a friend.

"What?" Judy had read his face.

"Nothing. I'm just…" He hesitated but seeing the kind questioning look on her face, he continued. "I'm being silly. I was just thinking that I'm gonna miss not seeing you everyday."

"I know." She had a sad smile on her face. After a pause she said. "But, we _will_ see each other everyday. Just not while we're working and it'll be only for a few months."

"You're right, Fluff." Then he remembered he wanted to ask her something. "Hey, now that Chief Buffalo Butt gave us his 'green light' to date, do you still want to keep our relationship a secret from everyone else?" He looked a little tense asking that.

"Good question." She thought for a moment. "Honestly, I don't see why we should keep it a secret. What do you think?" She asked back.

"I agree. I'm kind of tired of pretending I don't like you." He had a smirk on his face. He was more relaxed after hearing her answer. "Now, let's go to bed." He said with a flirting look. The bunny jumped into his arms and kissed him passionately. Nick carried her to the bedroom and they didn't leave the room until next morning.

Nick was awaken by the sound of his phone vibrating against his nightstand. He opened his eyes and immediately regretted it as the light from the window pierced them painfully. The bunny cuddled next to him was disturbed. She woke up too and saw his fox talking on the phone but she couldn't make out what he was saying. When he hung up, she noticed he was smiling.

"Who was that?" She only had one eye opened. She wanted to sleep a little longer.

"Good news, sweetheart." The fox kissed her on the cheek. "One apartment just became available, I didn't get all the details but we have to go now if we want to see it before someone takes it."

Judy could not contain her excitement. Suddenly she didn't feel sleepy anymore. She smooched Nick and jumped out of bed directly into the shower ignoring the minor headache she was feeling.

"C'mon, Nick!" She yelled from the bathroom and asked him to join her in the shower. When he made a remark about a 'quickie', she almost couldn't resist. "Didn't my fox have enough last night?... No, wait! We'll have to wait 'till later. This is just so we can save time."

In less than 15 minutes they were ready and leaving the apartment. Nick was delighted. He loved seeing Judy so animated. This was the same kind of enthusiasm she put when they were following a lead on a case. They arrived at the apartment complex and saw a beaver waiting for them outside. He introduced himself as Steve and then started to show them the place. The building was small, about 5 stories, with a parking lot underground.

Steve was showing them how safe the building was with several security measures so only tenants could get or let someone in. He showed them the emergency stairs but they went up in the elevator and stopped at the third floor.

The doors of the elevator opened and showed a dark hall. They followed Steve and they realized there were lights with a movement sensor. The beaver explained this was done to save energy. Apparently there were other 3 apartments on the same floor. They stopped at the one that was numbered 303.

Both Judy and Nick were impressed. The apartment, though it wasn't exactly big, was somehow spacious. There was a living room/dining room, two bedrooms, a separate room for the kitchen and a bathroom.

Steve showed them everything in the apartment and explained that there was also a laundry room at the top of the building. He told them that all the apartments were originally built for wolf-sized animals but the mammals who used to live there for the last 15 years were a couple of servals so all of the fixtures and the appliances were smaller. It was perfect. Besides being the perfect size for a fox and a rabbit, it was relatively close to the precinct and just a couple of blocks away from the subway station. The beaver left the apartment to give them a few minutes to think about what they would do.

"I love it!" Judy squeaked as soon as Steve left. "It's just the right size for us. The kitchen and the bathroom are just a little too big for me and a little too small for you but still comfortable for both. I think this is the best we can get."

"I think you're right, Carrots." Nick sounded as enthusiastic as Judy. "The only issue is that the rent is a little higher than we expected. Is that ok with you?"

"I think is worth it." Judy said simply. "Remember I just got promoted and this job is my second income."

"Oh, yes." Nick said with a mocking grin. "How could I have forgotten that you are a carrot farmer?"

"Oh, hush!" Judy said smiling and rolling her eyes. "But yeah, I can cover a bigger part of the rent." They had previously agreed to divide all expenses in two.

"Thank you, Carrots." He said sincerely and then added. "But you're forgetting that this fox used to make two hundred bucks a day, free of tax, with no friends or family to spend them on. So, believe me. We can rent anything we want."

"Is that so, Mister Fox?" She approached him with an exaggerated flirtatious look and pulled him by the tie to her. Nick grabbed her hips to get even closer but just at that moment Steve opened the door and the couple let go of each other.

They closed the deal that same day. They wanted to move in as soon as possible. Judy had already covered her last month of rent and Nick, since he had been living for several years at his current place, was on a month to month deal so he could leave anytime he wanted. Neither of them had any furniture (Nick rented a furnished apartment) so they were also going to go shopping for some household articles.

They were taking a big step and it felt good.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter XVII

The couple planned to use the next day of their weekend to clean their new apartment. They didn't want to bring their possessions into a dirty place. But since it was almost totally empty, except for the stove in the kitchen, they only took about an hour.

After eating some lunch they proceeded to go shopping for new furniture. They were walking holding hands, which was new to the couple now that they weren't worried about running into someone. They got some weird looks from mammals. Some of them were staring or squinting while others just looked surprised or even shocked.

Neither Judy nor Nick cared about them. When they started their relationship they prepared for this scenario although Judy had to admit she wasn't expecting so many looks since not even in Bunnyburrow they had received so much attention.

They entered a furniture store. The couple didn't want big expensive furniture so they picked up pieces that were cozy and that looked homey. They didn't want to spend that much money but they did want the place to look nice. Once they made their choices, they placed the order and were told it would take about five business days for everything to be delivered.

When they were at the check out, the cashier, who was a raccoon, was staring at them in a very similar way that people from the streets were doing it. When he realized he was being impolite he looked a little embarrassed and pointed a finger at Judy.

"You are Judy Hopps." Then he pointed at Nick. "And you are Nick Wilde."

Apparently the reason this raccoon and people from the street were gazing so much at the couple was because they recognized them. Not only for being the first rabbit and fox officers but because they had saved Zootopia from the nighthowler attacks. Weeks after the incident, news channels were still discussing information about the case, which gave Judy and Nick a lot of (unwanted) screen time. They had become a source of inspiration for prey and predators. Needless to say, people seemed to be pleasantly surprised that they were dating.

Just like in the past, Nick and Judy didn't pay attention to all the gossip on the media. They could not let that get in the way of their relationship. A few days after being recognized by the raccoon, other mammals approached them on the streets to ask about their relationship and express admiration.

At work, most of their coworkers congratulated them, others just seemed like they didn't care but the most excited of them all was without a doubt Benjamin Clawhauser. The cheetah had bombarded the couple with several questions and demanded all the details. Judy and Nick did their best to answer them all without giving away very intimate details.

By the end of the week, they had their apartment ready for moving in. Since neither Nick, nor Judy had many friends, they decided not to throw a housewarming party and spent their first night there just enjoying each other's company.

Weeks went by and the couple quickly adapted to their new way of living, it seemed like things were actually easier for them since they worked as a team so problems related to cohabiting were, not exactly nonexistent, but minimum.

Their favorite part of the day was definitely when they got home from work and talked about their days. Judy had been a detective for about a month and Nick had been working without a partner but their performances had not gone down even if they weren't with each other during work.

One morning during roll call Bogo asked them both to his office. When they got there, they saw that someone was waiting for them inside. It was a hippopotamus who they recognized as the mayor of Zootopia. They had met him the first time at Nick's graduation and a bunch of other times when the duo received medals (either individually or as partners) for cases they solved or for providing assistance in different situations.

"Hopps, Wilde." Bogo said. "You know the mayor Hambert Hampton."

They shook hands with him and exchanged respectful greetings but still they both had a confused expression. Neither of them had any idea what the mayor could need from them. Mayor Hampton chuckled when seeing this.

"Don't worry, officers." He said sounding very charismatic. "You are not in trouble. On the contrary, I am here with a very interesting proposal."


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter XVIII

"I don't know, Nick." Judy said with uncertainty. They were having lunch in a small cafeteria near the precinct. "The offer was very tempting but we have to consider that we would get _more_ of unwanted attention. What if it gets in the way of our job?"

"It will only get in the way if we let it get in the way, Carrots." Said Nick simply. "It's not like we are selling out for the money. We liked the mayor since he was a candidate. He is a great mayor. His strategy has helped us lower the crime rates and offer more security to the city, also he has opened several homeless shelters, new schools and…" Nick paused a little bit and looked at his food. "He legalized interspecies marriage." He looked up and saw Judy staring at him with a blank expression. He cleared his throat and continued. "And the Chief approves." Judy was convinced.

"You're right. Let's do it." She agreed with him. "I guess I'm just nervous."

"But you said you received an offer like this before."

"Yes, but I didn't take it." Said Judy. "Besides, that was just being the public face of the ZPD, not the entire city."

They paid a visit to mayor Hampton to let him know they'd accepted his offer of becoming the public face of Zootopia. They would appear on billboards, pamphlets, TV commercials, the Zootopia website and other media with the purpose of encouraging the citizens to _Try to Make the World a Better Place._

The best part for Judy and Nick was that mayor Hampton had promoted Nick to detective, even though technically he still hadn't been an officer for a year, since the point of his campaign was to portray the bunny and the fox as a couple and partners. Hambert Hampton had seen a video of them on the internet where they were holding hands and came up with the idea of using them as publicity. ' _You represent inclusiveness, respect, acceptance and tolerance'_ , he had said. ' _Plus, people trust you to keep the city safe._ '

A month later, there wasn't a place in Zootopia were you couldn't see Nick and Judy's picture along with a legend encouraging mammals to recycle, respect the speed limit, help citizens in need, fasten their seat belts, volunteer in many activities and even some signs outside schools reminding children to look both ways before crossing the street. Nick and Judy's favorites were those that hearten people to be tolerant of other people's differences.

The couple quickly became some sort of celebrities even if they lacked the glamour. As per their request, they wore their police uniform in all pictures. Mayor Hampton had really liked this idea and preferred using _normal_ citizens instead of real celebrities (like former mayor Lionheart who had used Gazelle). The mammals of Zootopia could relate to them.

Judy and Nick knew that the mayor not only wanted to truly make the city better but he also was gaining popularity. However, they were fine with this since they had received an excellent response from all Zootopians and they could not complain about the money.

Months after, the royalties they got exceeded by far their annual pay at the ZPD. Nevertheless, most of that money was destined to charity. They didn't need it anyway. They both had good salaries, Judy's farm business was doing great and Nick's savings (from previous hustles) were practically untouched and still tax free since it was all in cash.

They couldn't be happier. Judy had finally found a balance between her love life and her job. She had discovered she could have the mammal and the job of her dreams while Nick felt he was a mammal worth of Judy's (and his own) love.

Note:

Thank you so much to everyone for your support. Here is another chapter that I hope you enjoy. The next chapter will be the last one.

This story has been a real challenge since it is the first thing I've ever written and English is not my native language.

Thank you, as well, for your reviews. Please know that even if I don't reply to them, I still read them and value them.


	19. Chapter 19

Epilogue

Judy and Nick were following a lead on a very important case. It was very early in the morning and they were both exhausted. They had been working on a missing mammal case for almost a month and so far the few clues they had gathered had led them nowhere. They had spent many nights without sleep trying to find any proofs, witnesses or even a small hint that would point them in the right direction.

Nick had never seen Judy look so tired. She had dark circles under her eyes, she was shedding excessive amounts of fur and looked very distracted and irritable. He knew her very well, after all, they had been living together for almost two years now. This case was getting to her.

"Judy. Sweetheart." He said carefully while driving their cruiser. "Please don't take this the wrong way but I think you should take the day off. You don't look so good."

"Are you kidding me, Wilde?" Judy responded kind of annoyed. "This is the best lead we have gotten in a month. I'm not giving up on this. We have to find those mammals."

"And we will." The fox didn't doubt her capability but she did look like she needed to rest. "I just don't think it's a good idea for you to be _like this_. I know you, Carrots. I know how worried you are that we haven't solved this case. And you are also preoccupied with the preparations…" He took her left hand and rubbed an engagement ring with his thumb. "I think you should get some sleep and then you can continue with a clear head tomorrow."

Even though Judy knew Nick was right, she just scoffed and decided to ignore him. She hated being treated like she was incapable of things. Nick should know that more than anyone! But instead of supporting her, he had decided to cast her away like all her work meant nothing.

"Unbelievable." She muttered under her breath but still loud enough for Nick to hear her. They didn't speak for the rest of the ride.

They parked the car in front of an underground bar near the Rainforest District. Nick, even though the place was dark, was able to see very well the inside of the bar: dusty and creepy. Judy's sight was not as good as Nick's but she could sense a very strong smell of dirt and humidity invading her nose.

Since it was daytime, the place was almost empty, except for a few mammals that were still drinking from the previous night. Deeper into it, they found the mammal they were looking for. He looked pretty _clandestine_. His face was half covered with a scarf and he was wearing a long coat. However, the information he passed was priceless.

They connected some dots and deduced the place were the missing mammals could be and maybe it was the place the whole operation was working from. They headed deeper into the Rainforest District and found an abandoned warehouse. Nick called the front desk to report that they were going to take a closer look.

The couple approached the place very carefully. Even though it was still day time, the inside of the warehouse was dark since due to the heavy vegetation blocking the sun. They were about to leave the place so they could get a warrant to get in and investigate some more, when they heard a scream coming from the inside of the building.

"Probable cause." They said at the same time and got inside the building with their tranquilizer guns ready.

They followed some sounds and voices that came from inside a room. The light was on and the door was opened but they could not see anything. Judy took out her carrot recorder and stood close to the door. Nick was behind her. They could hear two animals speaking. Apparently they were trafficking with mammals and the victim they had with them was a new 'acquisition'. Suddenly Judy felt very sick. She couldn't believe that they were treating mammals as objects.

After a while, they got everything recorded including, names, dates, events and plans for future kidnaps and deliveries. Now they had to proceed to arrest the people inside but they had to be very careful since the last thing they wanted was to get the victim hurt.

Judy decided to call in for backup and also gave Clawhauser the new information about the whereabouts of the rest of the victims so another patrol could go there.

A couple of minutes before backup arrived, the mammals inside were finishing their business and stepped out of the room. What Judy and Nick hadn't realized is that the criminals were not alone. Each one of them had a bodyguard. There was a tigress who had a grizzly bear behind her and a bull with a wolf providing protection.

Nick and Judy remained silent and hidden because there was not way they could take on all of them. They were outnumbered. But when the group of mammals passed them, the wolf sniffed the air and discovered them. He started to shoot at the couple and the bear mimicked him. Luckily all bullets missed them.

Both Nick and Judy started shooting their tranquilizers at the bodyguards, but Judy noticed that the tigress and the bull were running away.

"Nick, cover me!" She yelled.

The fox was left with no choice, he watched the bunny sprint after the mammals who were carrying the victim. Judy soon caught up with them and used her weapon to take them down but the grizzly bear, who had no more ammo, followed after her and threw what looked like a rafter at her. She tried to dodge it but the heavy piece of iron got her on the leg.

She fell to the floor with agonizing pain and saw the bear going down too. Nick had shot him. Just then the backup arrived.

"Judy!" The fox was beyond worried for the mammal he loved. He knelt and inspected the wound. Luckily there were not any broken bones but she had a deep cut and was bleeding a lot.

Judy and Nick were on an ambulance on the way to the hospital. The paramedics had controlled the bleeding.

"I feel sick." Said Judy weakly.

One of the paramedics explained it was normal after all the blood loss she had suffered.

"I'm sorry, Nick." She took his fiance's paw. "I have been such a jerk lately. I don't know what has gotten into me. Are you sure you still want to marry me?" She was crying now.

Nick smiled at her. "I can't wait to marry you, Carrots." He kissed her forehead. "But for now, let's just worry about getting you healed."

When they were at the hospital, a doctor took Judy to clean and suture her wound and ran some blood test to rule out tetanus since the bunny could not remember if she was vaccinated against it. She was also administered an IV to help her recover.

The couple were waiting for the doctor to come back with the results and to remove the IV. After what seemed an eternity, she arrived looking concerned and asked to speak with Judy alone but Judy told her that whatever she had to say to her, Nick could hear it too. The doctor insisted but could not convince the bunny.

"Very well, then…" The doctor hesitated but complied. "You're pregnant."

Judy threw up, almost missing the trash can. Nick's brain decided to shut down. The doctor didn't know what to do, this was the most awkward scenario she could think of.

Nick finally found his voice. "H-how, h-how is it, uhmm, how is it possible? If she is a rabbit and I'm a fox."

"Well… is not." She saw Judy throw a dirty look at her. "I mean, it has never happened before."

"Are you completely sure, doctor?" Nick said while helping Judy sit down.

"Yes, I ran the test four times." The doctor looked at Nick with a pity look. She obviously doubted he was the father.

"Well, it's great news!" Nick said after a long silence. He hugged Judy who started to cry and hugged him back. The doctor couldn't believe they looked happy. That was unexpected.

Nick took care of the paperwork for the missing mammal case that was now closed and spoke to Bogo. He didn't say anything about 'Judy's condition'. The couple wanted to speak first with a gynecologist to make sure everything was ok before spreading the news. Bogo acknowledged the great work Nick and Judy had done and gave them the week off.

Later that same day, the fox and the rabbit were looking at an ultrasound. According to their OB-GYN, Judy was already 18 weeks pregnant and expecting one healthy-looking baby. They now comprehended why Judy was so tired and moody. The doctor prescribed vitamins and told Judy that she could carry on with her normal life as long as she didn't skip any meals, didn't lift heavy objects, rest well and of course didn't put herself in dangerous situations.

The doctor had told them how unusual it was for them to just be expecting one baby since rabbits usually carried larger litters. When they suggested that maybe Nick's genes had something to do with it, the doctor was shocked. She had assumed they had used a donor.

She explained she had seen interspecies pregnancies but it was usually between the same _type_ ; like different types of bears, or different felines but never mammals so different as a fox and a rabbit.

Even though she seemed skeptic, she suggested Judy to be more careful and not do any heavy physical activity. If necessary, she could take a long walk. This meant Judy could only do desk work. Also she asked her to call her if _anything_ happened. The doctor did not want to take any risks since this pregnancy was unprecedented.

When the couple was heading back to their apartment, Judy noticed that Nick was very pensive.

"You don't doubt this is your child, right?" She asked carefully.

"How can you ask such a question, sweetheart?" He said. "I would never doubt you, Judy. I guess I am still getting used to the idea that we are going to be parents." He then smiled.

"I know, I still can't believe it."

Nick and Judy did a small wedding ceremony with just parents and a few close friends. They had decided to turn down the idea of a big wedding since they could use the money for the baby and avoid all the stress that came with the preparations.

Judy's pregnancy was as normal as anyone could hope. The weeks passed quickly and the rabbit was expecting to grow several sizes (being Nick almost twice her size) but her tummy didn't look any different from the ones she had seen on her sisters. She guessed the reason was because her baby was as big as a litter of rabbits.

The doctor had confirmed that the baby was a girl and that it didn't look like a rabbit but neither like a fox and that she was pretty sure it would be a blend between the two. She was actually documenting this 'discovery' as it was unheard of in the medical community and looked really excited.

Also, she had explained Judy that the baby's head was too big for a natural birth and they would have to program a c-section. Judy didn't complain and set the date. She wanted what was best for the baby and she didn't care about the scar she would get since it would be the first one with a beautiful story behind.

Due to the 'complications' of the pregnancy, Judy had begun her maternity leave before even having the baby since even doing paperwork at the office was a challenge. Her back hurt a lot if she remained in the same position for a while and even walking was risky since she couldn't see her feet anymore. She was desperate to have the baby, she hadn't been this uncomfortable in her whole life but at the same time she was very scared of becoming a mother even with the extensive experience of taking care of her nephews and nieces, this was _her_ baby.

Nick was also very worried, mostly for his wife's health. Her tummy was huge but everywhere else she was skinny. Before leaving for work in the morning, he arranged everything so Judy didn't have to leave the apartment if she needed anything. Judy usually didn't like to depend on anyone to do anything but this time she was actually enjoying being spoiled so much because this was a one time opportunity. " _Once our baby girl comes, no more spoiling for mom._ " She thought.

Finally, the day arrived. The married couple got to the hospital with time to spare. A nurse took Judy to get her prepared for surgery. The rabbit was trying to be as relaxed as possible. They told her Nick could be present for the birth of the baby and he would be allowed to come into the operating room to see that happen.

Nick waited to be called. Judy had been in surgery for about an hour when a doctor gave him a sort of hospital gown and allowed him into the room. He saw Judy laying on the table and a bunch on people working on her, but he didn't want to look at what they were doing. He just went to take Judy's paw and asked her how she was feeling.

"I am so much better now that I see you." She was smiling. "Also, the anesthetic helps."

A few minutes later they told Nick they were ready to take the baby out and he could watch if he wanted and even cut the umbilical cord, but he preferred not to look at the 'cut'. Just a few seconds passed and they heard their baby's first cry. A male doctor, who Nick assumed was the pediatrician, had her wrapped in a blanket and took her to them.

He put it on top of Judy who didn't know exactly how to hold her in the position she was but did her best and gave her a small kiss on the cheek. Judy didn't really know how or what to feel. Nick watched them and could only feel relief that everything went fine.

The pediatrician took the baby to be cleaned and measured and Nick left his wife side to go with him to make sure the baby was healthy before she was taken to the nursery and Nick was asked to leave so Judy could be stitched up.

After being taken to the recovery room and then to her actual hospital room, Judy was allowed to receive visits. Nick and her parents were there with her. There was nothing to do except waiting for the nurses to bring her baby so the family could meet her.

A nurse arrived at the room and left the baby. Judy's parents actually yelled in surprise when they saw how beautiful and unique looking the baby was.

The baby girl had grayish/brownish fur with a little of red and a darker color on her paws, the tip of her ears and the tip of her tail. Her ears were large and round for a fox but short and pointy for a rabbit. Her muzzle resembled more of a fox but it was not as long and her tail looked like a fox tail. Also, according to Bonnie, she was almost twice as big as a baby rabbit. They didn't know the color of her eyes since it would take a few weeks for it to show and at least six months to know if she would have carnivore or herbivore teeth. They all took turns to hold her until they gave her to Judy so she could start trying to feed her.

"So, have you decided on a name yet?" Asked Bonnie.

Judy and Nick looked at each other and nodded.

"Lila." Said Judy. "Lila Wilde."

Their parents left but promised they would be visiting more often to check on the three of them.

After three days at the hospital, the family went back home. They had everything ready to receive baby Lila who was asleep now. They put her on her crib and were contemplating the perfect blend their baby was. It really looked like she was 50 percent Nick and 50 percent Judy.

The fox hugged her rabbit and sighed deeply.

"Thank you, Carrots." He whispered. "You have given me _everything_. Even the impossible."

"I could say the same thing to you, Nick." She said against his chest.

Together, they had beaten the odds. They proved the world that when two mammals love each other as much as they did, whatever came across didn't matter. They had defeated prejudice, intolerance and rejection together. They had even won against nature and got a living proof of their love. When they were together everything made sense.

They were meant to be.

Fin.

Note:

When I decided and published that this would be the last chapter (because I was having a hard time creating more storyline), my dumb brain came up with a thousand more ideas which I guess are material for another story.

So that is the end of this 'experiment'. I really hope it was worth the wait and that you enjoyed at least part of it. I sure had a lot of fun writing this.

Thank you very much to everyone who read, followed, commented or favorited it. I really appreciated it and feel like it is more than I deserve.

You can also find the story on AO3 (same user name) and on DA (Ana-Lga).

Thank you!


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